Finding ways to watch all the NBA games I want can be challenging due to the complexities of the US sports broadcasting system. I often run into frustrating blackout restrictions and get confused by the differences between in-market and out-of-market game broadcasts.

In a hurry? The easiest way to watch out-of-market NBA games is with NBA League Pass, which you can get through the following services:

Fubo: The best streaming service for international sports also provides 150+ well-selected channels. Fubo allows you to try out its service with a free trial.
DIRECTV STREAM: Get a great channel lineup with the best selection of RSNs in the industry. A 5-day free trial is now available for DIRECTV STREAM.
Sling TV: This low-cost service allows you to select just the channel lineup you want. Save 50% on Sling TV now.

If you can’t watch your favorite sports because of your location, get ExpressVPN to access the content you deserve.

Why You Need a VPN Today

However, first you need a VPN to unblock US streaming services from . Our favourite is ExpressVPN. It’s definitely not the cheapest option at $4.99/month, but it just works – and across all your devices.

They have servers in 25+ US cities/states and 105 countries, which unblock access to premium streaming platforms available only in the US, as well as free “on demand” TV services worldwide.

You’ll have access to local platforms as if you were in the country, meaning you can watch BBC iPlayer as if you were in the UK, CBC Gem as if you were in Canada, plus hundreds more worldwide.

Hotdog users get three months free at ExpressVPN, so it’s a “no-brainer” for us. Decide for yourself with their 30 day money-back guarantee.

IMPORTANT: Once you’ve installed your VPN and connected to a US server, you’ll still need to subscribe separately to access premium streaming services.

Table Of Contents

1 Out-of-Market NBA Games
2 Out-of-Market NBA Games Options
3 NBA League Pass Streaming Devices
4 Wrapping Up

Out-of-Market NBA Games

There is a lot of jargon that has been created to describe the strange way that many sports are broadcast in the United States. Two of the most important are out-of-market and in-market.

In-market games are those that involve your local team. If you live in Portland, Oregon, any matchup that involves the Trail Blazers is in-market. And any matchup that does not involve them is out-of-market.

To watch most in-market games, you need access to the regional sports network (RSN) that covers your local team. In the case of Trail Blazers games, that’s Root Sports Northwest.

NBA League Pass was created to allow basketball fans to watch out-of-market games. It is like the anti-RSN. So to continue our example, those in Portland would be able to watch all games except for those that involve the Trail Blazers.

Out-of-Market NBA Games Options

There are various ways to watch out-of-market NBA games of varying degrees of cost and power.

National Games

Most NBA fans don’t need to even think about out-of-market games because the NBA has done an impressive job of providing nationally broadcast games. This year, 267 NBA regular season games will be broadcast on ABC (18), ESPN (79), NBA TV (106), or TNT (65). (Note that two games appear on ABC and ESPN at the same time. See our NBA Viewer’s Guide for the complete schedule.

All the play-in and playoff games will also appear on those channels.

The following streaming services offer all those channels:

Sling TV: Although it doesn’t offer ABC, you will still get to watch all those games with ESPN3. With Sling Orange, you can watch 169 games for just $40.00/month. (Sling TV review) (Playoffs Guide)
DIRECTV STREAM: Get all these national channels along with whatever RSNs are offered in your area. (DIRECTV STREAM review)
YouTube TV: Get all the national channels to watch the NBA.

NBA League Pass

Most of the major sports leagues provide out-of-market packages. There are NFL Sunday Ticket and MLB.tv, for example. And the NHL uses ESPN+ for this purpose.

Try NBA League Pass Free!

Similarly, the standard way to watch out-of-market NBA games is to sign-up for NBA League Pass. You can get it directly from the league and watch either on the NBA app or through NBA.com.

There are three NBA League Pass subscription types. First, is the standard package, which you can get for $99.99/yr or $14.99/mo. This includes out-of-market games with commercials on a single device.

Next, you can get NBA Team Pass for $89.99/yr, if you are only interested in the games of your favorite team and don’t care about the rest. But it limits you to the games of a single team for not much cost savings.

Finally, you can get League Pass Premium for $149.99/yr or $22.99/mo. This package allows you to stream on up to 3 devices at once.

For local games, blackout restrictions apply for three days after the game. For nationally broadcast games, the blackout restrictions are removed three hours after games. Either case is not acceptable to most fans.

Given you will also need the other channels, most people get NBA League Pass through a live TV streaming service: Fubo, Sling TV, DIRECTV STREAM, and YouTube TV.

VPN

VPNs are powerful tools that are essential for cord-cutters. They won’t allow you to watch games you don’t have the rights to. But under circumstances where geotargeting is blocking you from watching games, they can work miracles.

But again: they don’t provide content. You need to combine them with a live TV streaming service like Fubo to catch the action during the NBA season.

Social Solutions for Watching Out-of-Market NBA Games

We list this one last but it might well be your first option: reach out to friends, family, and co-workers. Most people enjoy watching live sports with a group and are glad to share their services.

A related prospect is the now ubiquitous sports bar. These establishments normally air multiple games at the same time. And more recently, you can even find non-drinking establishments that cater to sports fan, although they are still rare.

NBA League Pass Streaming Devices

There is some variability in terms of device support for the various services. But they all support the most popular devices: Amazon Fire TV/Firestick, Android mobile, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS (iPhone, iPad), Roku, Samsung smart TVs, and web browsers.

Wrapping Up

The NBA makes it relatively easy to be a fan whether your favorite team lives close by or far away. Sling TV provides an inexpensive way to follow the league. But if you want it all, we recommend DIRECTV STREAM.

Page Updates ▼▲

Oct 20, 2023

Updated for 2023-24 season.
May 8, 2023

Added links to streaming services. Updated some section headings. Changes to some of the sections. Various content updates.

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Frank Moraes

I am a Senior Content Editor at Hotdog.com, specializing in sports streaming and regional programming issues. With a PhD in Atmospheric Physics from the Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and extensive experience in remote sensing technology, including early video streaming, I bring a unique technical perspective to the streaming industry.

My expertise in sports coverage, particularly for out-of-market games and regional sports networks, stems from years of hands-on experience as an early adopter of streaming services and my work addressing fans' viewing challenges. As a longtime cord-cutter and subscriber to multiple streaming platforms, I combine my technical knowledge with practical user experience, making me a leading expert in the field of sports streaming and entertainment technology.